From Smart Farming towards Unmanned Farms: A New Mode of Agricultural Production

Tan Wang, Xianbao Xu, Cong Wang, Zhen Li and Daoliang Li
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Tan Wang: National Innovation Center for Digital Fishery, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China
Xianbao Xu: National Innovation Center for Digital Fishery, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China
Cong Wang: National Innovation Center for Digital Fishery, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China
Zhen Li: National Innovation Center for Digital Fishery, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China
Daoliang Li: National Innovation Center for Digital Fishery, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 2, 1-26

Abstract: Agriculture is the most important industry for human survival and solving the hunger problem worldwide. With the growth of the global population, the demand for food is increasing, which needs more agriculture labor. However, the number of people willing to engage in agricultural work is decreasing, causing a severe shortage of agricultural labor. Therefore, it is necessary to study the mode of agricultural production without labor force participation. With the rapid development of the Internet of Things, Big Data, artificial intelligence, robotics and fifth-generation (5G) communication technology, robots can replace humans in agricultural operations, thus enabling the establishment of unmanned farms in the near future. In this review, we have defined unmanned farms, introduced the framework of unmanned farms, analyzed the current state of the technology and how these technologies can be used in unmanned farms, and finally discuss all the technical challenges. We believe that this review will provide guidance for the development of unmanned farms and provide ideas for further investigation of these farms.

Keywords: unmanned farm; accurate perception; intelligent decision; auto-work (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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